July 23, 2014—Ford Motor says the 2015 F-150 will be at least 700 pounds lighter than that of the previous model year because of the use of military-grade aluminum alloy in the body and the cargo box, as well as the use of high-strength steel.

July 21, 2014—Proctor & Gamble and Whirlpool created a partnership to build an appliance that the companies say can reduce a consumer’s ironing and steaming needs and has the potential to cut your dry-cleaning expenses in half.

July 21, 2014—The Kidizoom Smartwatch ($60), which has a 1.4-inch color touch screen, can be connected to a home computer via a micro USB cable to charge the watch’s battery or to upload images, videos or voice recordings.

July 8, 2014—The manufacturer of a defective vacuum cleaner agreed to pay a $725,000 civil penalty to settle charges by Consumer Product Safety Commission that it knowingly failed to report a defect in the product’s electrical wiring.

July 25, 2014—Consumers who purchase subsidized health insurance through markets that are run by the federal government likely have no reason to worry about a federal courts clash that challenges the legality of such subsidies, three independent health-insurance experts tell Consumers Digest.

March 27, 2014—Federal Trade Commission proposed changes to its Fuel Rating Rule today that recognizes a new octane-rating method and revises requirements for blends of gasoline that have more than 10 percent ethanol.

July 25, 2014—Consumers who purchase subsidized health insurance through markets that are run by the federal government likely have no reason to worry about a federal courts clash that challenges the legality of such subsidies, three independent health-insurance experts tell Consumers Digest.

Deals on electronics are few for rest of holiday season

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Consumers aren’t likely to run into a shortage of products to buy this holiday shopping season, but they might face a shortage of deals—particularly on electronic devices.

Jordan Selburn, who is a principal analyst of consumer electronics with IHS iSuppli, says any electronic device that includes a hard drive (e.g. videogame consoles, personal computers, set-top boxes) likely won’t be subject to significant sales or price cuts because of the recent flooding in Thailand, where many hard drives are manufactured, and its negative impact on production. (Tablet computers are likely to be exempt from this pool, Selburn notes, because most tablets operate on flash drives.)

“I was talking to one [electronics company] this morning who said they were scrambling to find hard drives,” he says. “And even when they did find them, they’re now paying $80 or $90 for them where they once paid $50.”

National Retail Federation (NRF) reported that consumers spent an estimated $52 billion this past weekend, which is a 16 percent increase from the roughly $45 billion that consumers spent last year over the Thanksgiving weekend. Kathy Grannis, who is an NRF spokesperson, says electronics accounted for nearly 40 percent of the sales this year.

Although consumers are on the hunt for the best deals, many also have a pent-up demand to spend money, according to Marshal Cohen of The NPD Group. Cohen says the jump in spending doesn’t reflect a higher degree of consumer confidence inasmuch as a higher degree of “frugal fatigue.”

“A lot of the electronics purchased were self-purchased products,” he says. “They aren’t intended to be gifts, but just for the individuals themselves.”

Discounts are a traditional part of the Black Friday weekend, Grannis says, but retailers don’t turn a strong profit when everything is discounted. She says storewide sales likely will return at the end of the holiday season, and online discounts or sales on individual items will fill out the weeks in between.

Selburn says he wouldn’t be surprised if retailers take advantage of consumers’ “frugal fatigue” and steer clear of heavy discounts.

– P. Snyder

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